In Bangladesh, 3.7 million people have reportedly signed a petition urging the prime minister of Bangladesh to allow Dr Yunus to continue as the head of Grameen Bank. The event, organized by “The Citizens’ Committee to Protect the Honour of Nobel Laureate Professor Yunus,” was held after the Bangladesh High Court upheld the argument of the government of Bangladesh invalidating the original appointment of Dr Yunus as the managing director of Grameen Bank.
According to Knowledge@Wharton, the online business journal of the United States’ Wharton School of Business, the removal of Dr Yunus is politically motivated. Dr Yunus’ brief stint in politics in 2007 was viewed as “unwelcome competition” by the current Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina. Wharton legal studies professor Nien-hê Hsieh stated that, “If people come to see Grameen Bank as subject to politics and political influence in this way, it [could] certainly be a problem for borrowers. Even if [Yunus’s dismissal was] not politically motivated, just the perception that it is could be damaging” [1].
Knowledge@Wharton also raises concern over the lack of succession candidates to succeed Dr Yunus as head of Gramen Bank. According to Stuart Rutherford, an honorary fellow at the University of Manchester’s Brooks World Poverty Institute in the UK, “Given that poor households tend to equate Grameen with Yunus, this means finding some way to keep Yunus as a figurehead.” [1]
By Medha Ravi, Research Associate
About Grameen Bank:
Grameen Bank is a Bangladeshi microfinance institution that provides loans to poor entrepreneurs in rural areas. It was founded in the late 1970’s by Muhammad Yunus, who, along with Grameen Bank, won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for his work in developing the concept of microfinance. As of February 2010, Grameen reports 8 million borrowers, 97 percent of whom are women. With 2,563 branches, Grameen Bank provides services in 81,343 villages. Grameen Bank has the equivalent of USD 1.4 billion in assets as of 2009 as indicated by the Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX), the US-based microfinance data provider.
Sources and Additional Resources:
[1] Knowledge@Wharton article, “The Ouster of Muhammad Yunus: Can Politics Destroy Grameen Bank?”, http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2753
The Daily Star news article, “Rally for Yunus”, http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=180359
MicroCapital.org story, April 4, 2011, “Grameen Foundation Founder Alex Counts Expresses Concern Over Removal of Dr Muhammad Yunus as Managing Director of Microfinance Institution (MFI) Grameen Bank”, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-grameen-foundation-founder-alex-counts-expresses-concern-over-removal-of-dr-muhammad-yunus-as-managing-director-of-microfinance-institution-mfi-grameen-bank/
MicroCapital.org story, March 14, 2011, “Crowd of 20,000 Protests Bangladesh Bank Attempts to Remove Dr Yunus as Managing Director of Microfinance Institution (MFI) Grameen Bank, US Secretary of State Clinton Among Those Offering Support”, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-crowd-of-20000-protests-bangladesh-bank-attempts-to-remove-dr-yunus-as-managing-director-of-microfinance-institution-mfi-grameen-bank-us-secretary-of-state-clinton-among-those/
MicroCapital.org story, March 8, 2011, “Bangladeshi Court Confirms Central Bank Decision to Remove Dr Yunus as Managing Director of Microfinance Institution (MFI) Grameen Bank”, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-bangladeshi-court-confirms-central-bank-decision-to-remove-dr-yunus-as-managing-director-of-microfinance-institution-mfi-grameen-bank/
MicroCapital Universe Profile: Grameen Bank, https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Grameen+Bank
Browse the MicroCapital Universe and add your entry to the wiki at https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/
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